LEADERSHIP
ON A
SCROLL
When US bakery giant Cinnabon announced it was heading Down Under, the internet went into meltdown. By Nick Hall
S
ocial media was littered with love for the hot scroll concept, which had staked its claim on gooey and gluttonous. But it wasn’t going to be easy to bring the flavours to life in Australia. In Seattle, where Cinnabon originated, the cool climate lends itself well to the fresh baked franchise market. A menu rich in sweet, cinnamon flavours captured the attention of the north-west US market, but as many franchisors have learned, the Aussie consumer is far more cautious. “In the early days, no one trusts the brand, you don’t have the history so it’s very hard to convince someone that the brand will work,” says Gaurav Bansal, director of Cinnabon Australia franchisor The Bansal Group. “Once that challenge is done, the second issue is supply chain. You can only order so much, you always have an expiry date on your supply chain. It takes two or so months to get the local supplies onside before they look at supplying to you.” For Bansal, Cinnabon was a brand he had always admired. He knew the offering had potential, but navigating the difficulties of staffing and baking fresh daily had kept him from taking the leap. It wasn’t until he went through a similar experience with fellow US chain Carl’s Jr. that he understood how to tackle the bakery business.
INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE Bansal acquired the Australian rights to Carl’s Jr. back in 2016, launching a series of restaurants across south-east Queensland. Bringing the international chain Down Under wasn’t easy, but in just under two years Bansal had amassed a Carl’s Jr. network of seven outlets, eventually being crowned International Developer of the
Year from Carl’s Jr. parent company CKE Restaurants. “Obviously with opening seven restaurants in Queensland, there was no other competitor,” Bansal says. “With the sales we did and the stability we have, it was really hard work paying off.” But the budding businessman wasn’t done there. After a few years focused on the Carl’s Jr. burger business, Bansal revisited the Cinnabon experiment, taking the lessons he’d learned and applying them to the all-new venture. “I realised it all came down to cost of goods,” he says. “With Cinnabon, the model has been successful all over the world because it’s a very low-cost format. Cost of goods for a scroll is sitting around 20 per cent, so it will be a high margin model, as compared to other QSR brands where your sales are high, but your cost of goods is also high.” Bansal approached the international chain and to his surprise, the iconic bakery business jumped at the chance. Now, less than a year after announcing plans to bring Cinnabon Down Under, Bansal is basking in the glory of another international accomplishment.
CINNABON AUSTRALIA OPENING In December, Cinnabon Australia threw open the doors to its inaugural outlet. More than 1400 fans eagerly waited outside the Toombul, Brisbane store, keen to catch a glimpse of the fresh scroll baking in action. The outlet didn’t disappoint. Queues poured in across opening weekend, which Gaurav put down to a perfect storm of positive promotion, brand recognition and a healthy dose of nostalgia. FEB/APR 2020 | 24 | WWW.FRANCHISEBUSINESS.COM.AU
